Monday, April 6, 2009

Swat Flogging, The News International & Ansar Abbasi - 9

On Mon, 4/6/09, Yousuf Jamil wrote:

Please read the attached document.

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Dear Jamil Sahab,

You are quoting Ansar Abbasi's article but may I ask, did Ansar Abbasi check before filing the attached article that Video was distributed by the sister of Mr Athar Minallah. Why disn't Ansar Abbasi file a news report on Ms. Samar Minallah? Why this double standard, read the news on Ansar Abbasi from the same newspaper where he works [The News International/Jang] and read it is same crowd who circulated the video of Flogging with whom Ansar Abbasi was very chummy. Protestors are very those people who were with Ansar Abbasi in his time of distress. Ansar Abbasi never flinched to file reports on honour killing but now he is asking twenty questions giving the references of Quran and Hadith. Stop using Religion for petty politics.

Where has gone now the so-called Shariah which Ansar Abbasi was trying to defend while defending Sufi Muhammad, Flogging and Taliban while reciting Quranic Verses of Surah-e-Nur[AL-NOOR (THE LIGHT) Chapter 24 from Quran] and what a fun he was reciting Surah Nur Verses to an Unveiled [BAYPARDAH] GEOTV News READER [I wonder where have gone all the verses of Quran regarding Veil]..

The protests against the vilification campaign and death threats to the Editor Investigations The News continued in the New Year as well, as the journalist community also backed their profession fellow by protesting in front of the Press Club.

Dozens of common people also gathered in front of Geo building to show solidarity with Ansar Abbasi.

A sit-in led by President Rawalpindi Islamabad Union of Journalist (RIUJ) Afzal Butt was staged to condemn death threats to a senior journalist because of his daring reports against the government allies and top judicial officer-bearer of the country. The RIUJ president said the threats to Ansar Abbasi were in fact threats given to the whole journalist community. “We all stand by Ansar Abbasi and urge the government to take serious notice of the threats,” Butt said.

Earlier, the Executive Committee of RIUJ also unanimously passed a resolution condemning the death threats to Ansar Abbasi.

Meanwhile, the civil society, traders and common citizens, who have been protesting in the twin cities and Murree to show solidarity with Ansar Abbasi, once again staged a protest demo in front of the Geo TV Building.

Addressing the participants, Arshad Abbasi paid rich tributes o the editor investigations, The News, and said media was not a governing authority anywhere in the world but it was the duty of media to highlight the malpractices, and this was what Ansar Abbasi was doing.

He said Pakistanis were proud of Ansar Abbasi because of his daring reports.

Ather Minallah said the current government was a continuation of Musharraf regime and media was not let to perform its duties freely. He said it was unfortunate that the poor people of Pakistan were being suppressed at the hands of elites, but now it was the time to change. He said the inhabitants of the capital would not tolerate any harassment of Ansar Abbasi and would tackle every attack directed towards him.

Tahira Abdullah said Ansar Abbasi was a representative of 160 million Pakistanis. She said the whole credit goes to Ansar and the Jang Group for practicing daring and upright journalism.

Speakers were of the view that media in Pakistan was the only tool which exposes the wrongdoings of the politicians and top officials, and it was not let to work. They said the whole nation was behind the Jang Group and its daring journalist Ansar Abbasi because of practicing transparent and factual journalism.